Artist Pierre Charpin’s works adorn sweaters by Koivu, the design world-approved knitwear label
Pierre Charpin’s works appear as embroideries across the latest collection from Koivu, a Finnish-Italian knitwear label founded by design consultant and curator Anniina Koivu
Founded by Anniina Koivu – a design consultant and curator who has worked with Kvadrat, Vitra and Iittala, among others – Finnish-Italian label Koivu has become an in-the-know favourite for design-world denizens seeking the perfect sweater (case in point: her designs are often spotted in the Wallpaper* offices).
Crafted from 100 per cent merino yarn in a compact lock stitch specially developed by the Koivu team, the satisfyingly weighty jumpers – 800g of dense knit, to be precise – are cut with a loose, straight fit for both men and women. ‘[They] can be comfortably worn by anyone,’ says Koivu.
Koivu: the in-the-know label loved by the design world
Koivu’s classic jumpers are already available in a range of monochrome shades, and a new collaboration with Pierre Charpin sees them adorned with the French artist and designer’s unique works, here rendered in embroidery. Charpin, who is known for his work with graphic forms and broad use of colour, has created two drawings for the project.
The first is titled ‘Flo’, and features colourful, twisting lines across a navy blue jumper; the second is called ‘Scala’ – crafted from white thread on a black Koivu sweater – and recalls a staircase. The limited-edition styles launch this month (September 2023).
A second, ongoing collaboration accompanies the A/W 2023 release, seeing Giulio Ridolfo – a textile and colour expert from Italy – create a series of sweaters in bi-tonal knits. From afar, they look like a single colour; look closer, and they are knitted from a subtle melange of two similar shades.
‘When artificial colours are monochromatic, they react differently to light. Sometimes they lack depth,‘ he explains. ‘To achieve deeper tones in textiles, we work with juxtapositions.’
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Jack Moss is the Fashion Features Editor at Wallpaper*, joining the team in 2022. Having previously been the digital features editor at AnOther and digital editor at 10 and 10 Men magazines, he has also contributed to titles including i-D, Dazed, 10 Magazine, Mr Porter’s The Journal and more, while also featuring in Dazed: 32 Years Confused: The Covers, published by Rizzoli. He is particularly interested in the moments when fashion intersects with other creative disciplines – notably art and design – as well as championing a new generation of international talent and reporting from international fashion weeks. Across his career, he has interviewed the fashion industry’s leading figures, including Rick Owens, Pieter Mulier, Jonathan Anderson, Grace Wales Bonner, Christian Lacroix, Kate Moss and Manolo Blahnik.
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